MaeQueenofMidsommar

Day Thirteen Even though we were only expected to do about eleven or twelve days, I felt that this should be included in the jar with the other items. I began hoarding pens during middle school upon discovering how much I loved to write, and that love only grew as I began to fill notebooks with short stories, ideas of others, and (dare I say) fanfiction. I still remember getting reprimanded in middle school writing a story in my notebook instead of paying attention to the lesson. When becoming mature and responsible enough, I was gifted my first laptop and that only made that feeling skyrocket. I was able to create documents, visual boards, gather visual references, anything to get my work written down. It was phenomenal, the sense of pride when I got to write some of it out and send it to my friends to read and give their thoughts on them. Those early moments helped build my style as a writer, creating a unique voice that has represented itself in my assignments. And while I have shifted to working on my laptop when writing my new novel, I have developed a new method that creates a visual storyboard in sticky notes on notebook pages and parts of my world building on index cards (creating a physical and simple aspect that can also be brought along with a laptop and not be completely digital). [I applaud anyone who can be completely digital for major projects when writing a series of novels.] But, with the pen, it physically represents my desire of writing and the love that has stemmed from it. Deep down, I will always be a writer at heart, and I am happy with that.

Day Twelve So, as you may know or have an idea of knowing, I'm a giant nerd. Just recently my friends have been trying to teach me how to play D&D so that I could get into a new campaign they're planning to start in the next few months. While learning some of the information that some beginners should become familiar with, another friend of mine decided to make me some dice from resin, incorporating my obsession with the color blue with some galaxy themes. I couldn't get past how pretty it was and felt that it belonged in the jar - for the purpose of signifying that, while I am almost in my mid twenties, I still have a hold on my childlike curiosity to learn new things, especially when it comes to something as complex like Dungeons and Dragons.

Day Eleven Where do I even begin with this item for my jar?! Pokémon was my intro to anime at the tender age of two or three, before even realizing it was an anime. (I still remember watching it on VHS as a kid and hearing one of the characters refer to onigiri as a doughnut.) While I don't have many things from my early childhood (for various reasons), this little figurine has survived a number of moves, dogs' mouths, sticky toddler fingers, and a near close call being washed down an open sink drain. This was my favorite, given that I have been obsessed with the color blue, love swimming, and adored turtles as a kid. The amount of nostalgia this brought me when I found it inside of a box in my closet hit me so hard, conjuring up memories of waking up early on Saturday mornings with my cousins to turn the tv on so we could watch the week's newest episode.

Day Ten As an English Education major during a pandemic, I find myself on the computer much longer than I am used to. And with shifting completely online, I spend on average around nine to twelve (9-12) hours on my laptop for classes and the assignments with them each day. Then, when those are done, I spend another few more hours working on my new novel and the world that it takes place in (this is my first time world-building and I have put so many hours into it). So, because of this, I have invested in a few of these (because I already suffer from headaches as is, but the long periods of staring at a screen and my eyes drying out has caused them to occur much more). I have one next to my bed, another on the table in my living room, a few in my purses and backpacks, and other places, that way if I lose one there's more to replace it. These have saved me on numerous occasions and I am so thankful for them.

Day Nine (I don't mean to make anyone hungry with this post, sorry in advance) As a must have for my usual order, I always make sure to ask for fortune cookies in the bag before they send it out for delivery. Even though I'm not a fan of actually eating the cookie when I open them, I have developed a habit of reading the fortune and, if the slip is something that I agree with or need, I eat the cookie (I grew up believing that if you eat the cookie then your fortune will come true, so I have been conditioned just a bit). Tonight I got this fortune that reads: "Take some time and really listen to your own inner wisdom." With everything that is going on (i.e. the inauguration, continuance of the virus, stress of life/family/work/school, etc.) there is all this overstimulation that is making our thoughts turn into white noise in order to just get through each day. So after reading this, I took a moment and found myself stressed out (which I had been putting off fixing for a while), so I decided to take an evening to myself and do some sketching that I've been wanting to do. It helped alleviate some of the tension that I had allowed to build.

Day Eight Found another item on my path to the mailbox again today! The crows are really trying to befriend/claim me it seems. I'll make sure to leave them some naan bread when I finish dinner later. This bead/marble-esque shape and size was so small that I almost didn't notice it, but when picking it up I noticed it was hollow. How odd! Maybe it's a shaped filigree piece that was meant for wind chime making, or for some other embellishing purpose. I can't get over how pretty it is though.

Day Seven I am convinced that if I were a dragon, the top items I'd hoard would be; books (novels or notebooks, it doesn't matter), pens, and skeleton keys (such an interesting line up). This key I chose for my jar because it has the most interesting design out of the others, especially the metal patina in the crevices to make it appear more antiquated than it actually is. The collecting of skeleton keys (whether functional or just for design) has spanned back since I was a child and I found some in my backyard, beginning a small collection which I have continued to this day.

Day Six So, if you have not gathered yet, I am pagan. For those who may not know what that means, I'll keep it simple; I am an individual who holds a spiritual path that deviates from what is known as the 'main world religions' (i.e. Christianity, Catholicism, or the such). I have gods I worship, rituals, and other such practices, like having an altar which I have dedicated to the gods I follow. On my altar, I have candles and incense (some which I like the smell of or others which are associated to the gods I worship). The photo of the item is the remainder of an incense stick which had finished burning, leaving the stick behind (for any who are wondering what the smell was, it was a cherry-vanilla combination that was very pleasant and I will DEFINITELY be purchasing more in the future). Incense are a good alternative to candles, in regards of comfort when having an open flame versus just a controlled ember that eats away at the incense before going out on its own when reaching the end where the stick is.

Day Five As someone who has a yard rich in local wildlife and the occasional stray cat, whenever my dogs aren't outside terrorizing them (one hates anything that walks or even BREATHES while the other is overly friendly and just curious), I stumbled across this beautiful marble. It's not rare to find random items in the yard, especially since some of the crows are known to make their nests in the trees in my neighborhood, but this was the most interesting one that I have encountered so far. But, it seems a crow has come to befriend me, because it was right in the middle of the stone path I walk to go get the mail (I'm home the most so I usually get anything that comes in). Either that, or it's trying to claim me as its 'human'.

Day Four Today's item for my wundertopf assignment is a hair bead which I received from my grandmother as a birthday present before moving away from my hometown. It's part of a bead pair where either holds a different symbol and I wore them in my hair for my last two years of high school, wanting to keep her close since I was so far away from her and the rest of my family. The symbol on it means "protection" and is part of the runic alphabet (are you starting to catch on to my spiritual path?), which is fitting given that I ended up moving to a town where I knew not a single person. Even though it has Viking roots, and we're unsure if we have that lineage in our family, she wanted me to feel that connection while so far away, and to know that even if she's not close she will be in heart (I know, cheesy huh?). With how the virus is still a case for concern, unless I get tested and stay away from others until getting results back that states I'm safe, it has become difficult being able to visit her for the holidays. Plus, I want to ensure she's still around to see her eldest granddaughter get married someday ^w^

Day Three The third item to make it's way into my jar is this peculiar stone, from a necklace that recently broke when I was doing some deep cleaning. I remember the stone, which seems identical to labradorite, and how I had brushed the others and the beads into my jewelry box with the forgotten promise of fixing it when I have time. Only, time skip to over a year later, I find it again when I was straightening up after unpacking some boxes that held some of my dorm stuff. So when I picked it up, along with the other identical stones and beads, I couldn't help but feel like it just belonged in the jar just like the rock-coin. Not only did it spark a wonder of nature's beauty, much like the previous item, but it also held a sentimental value. The necklace had been given to me by a close friend and was one of those jewelry pieces that made me keep it in my jewelry box, afraid to wear it because I didn't want to ruin it.

Day Two The next item to go into my jar is this interesting piece. This has survived four moves, one of which was a journey that spanned about 100 miles away from my hometown, and has since become a good luck charm for me. When I had first picked it up, I had mistaken it for a coin - possibly a quarter - but revealed upon further inspection that it's actually a rock! With my sense of curiosity, it has become a constant in my jewelry box until putting it on my altar at last. The rock-coin has always piqued my interest in the beauty that is nature, an aspect which others seem to be noticing more with the continuance of the virus and needing to keep up with social distancing. As a result, a newfound wonder in nature has been trending, one that I hope continues.

Day One So even though this is my basic engagement ring (my fiancé has gifted me nicer ones, but given that I crochet and sketch ALOT, I don't feel bad allowing this to get banged up over the others) it has much more meaning to me. Out of my large family, I have many siblings - but I am my mother's only child - and a slew of cousins. But, I am the first one to be currently engaged out of the 'children' (a majority of us are adults but our parents still refer to us as such). While this holds a meaning of wonder for myself, it also holds the same - if not more - for my family (especially the women, all of them wanting to suggest ideas for my future wedding for me). My ring was the first to get placed into the jar, a feat which has probably set the bar for the other items to come.

Found a jar or container for my wundertopf assignment, given that all of my mason jars are for candle making so I can't really use those for this assignment ^w^; None the less, I have a jar

POV: When you realize that you’ve been posting the assignment photos on THE WRONG tumblr blog this whole time...